Long Road To Ruin
by Lady.Bronte
Summary: Home...' he thought pensively to himself amidst the bedlam of radiant light, '...comes in the form of a devastating woman.'


Hey guys!

I've been neglecting writing Uncharted (I'm at a dead end with it until I get some inspiration) so I decided to get my frustrations out with this little baby of mine.

Please review and let me know how you like it! You guys are my inspiration! And let me know if I wrote them okay and if I should continue writing them.

Thanks!

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**Long Road to Ruin**

Main medical bay was quaint at best; its sterile walls, its synthetic floors, its overall impression left something to be desired. It was surprisingly well lit for such a dark space, mottled with a litany of navy blues and darker days. The artificial dampeners provided a soft, droning hum to fill the empty air, cutting across the silence of the lonesome space like an obtrusive laser beam.

Dr. McCoy considered it his home.

Like any space he had ever lived it, it was more of a familiarity than anything, never feeling distinctly like he _owned_ it. It simply felt as if he were living in a motel for the entirety of his existence, never setting his roots into the ground and letting them flourish in the fruitful soil. After the unfortunate demise of his childhood home, no housing space could ever hope to replace its welcoming walls or its comforting rafters.

Gazing around tiredly, he tore his eyes away and returned to his office.

The chair was comfortable, he would allow himself that luxury; it was a soft not at all unlike leather, with a cooling sheen that had consoled many horrible nights. It was a darkened grey just a shade above the wool uniform trousers he was ordered to wear and the contrast, however minute, pleased him in a way he couldn't quite put a finger on.

_It's home_, he thought, _or as close as I'll ever get to one._

Running his weathered fingers though his chestnut hair, he let his thick tresses muss haphazardly without a care. No one would come to see him now; a good half of the crew was gallivanting through cobblestone streets on the pleasantly sweltering planet of Betelgeuse II, basking in the evening firelight festival.

He grunted and hoisted his feet upwards, propping his booted heels against the gunmetal steel of his desk. He muttered something grudgingly to himself before scooting a bit lower in his chair, resting his chin on his still uniformed chest. He laced his fingers together and laid them to rest across his abdomen, harshly barking at the computer to dim the lights.

He remained there for some time, stewing in his thoughts.

_Dumb son of a bitch_, he thought to himself bitterly, sinking further into his chair, _He would leave me on this godforsaken piece of sheet metal-_

There was a rustle from the interior of sickbay but Bones ignored it, content to rebuke the unwelcome disturber; he was in no mood to be roused from his misery.

He ordered the computer to polarize the windows so that the light from sickbay couldn't intrude on his personal gloom. He waited impatiently for the noise outside to stop before closing his russet eyes once again, poaching in his clandestine privation like he did every time he was abandoned on the Enterprise.

_Regulation 614, sub-directive five point six states that the Chief Medical Officer of any Federation vessel must remain on board throughout the duration of any shore leave that extends less than twenty four hours. _

_I hope they all get Betelgeusian osteopox, _McCoy smirked, _Then we'll see whose cryin' the blues when they can't move any of their joints-._

He scowled pointedly when he heard a quiet knock on his door and he tried to ignore it. He nodded his head to one side and tried to prop one of his ears against his shoulder to block out the sound.

The knocking continued.

"I'm busy!" He grumbled hoarsely at last, staring daggers at the door. He tried to settle back into the comfortable niche in which he had been resting in earlier but found his peace permanently disrupted.

There was a rustle at the door, "No you're not. I know for a fact that you're not."

Bones shot up from his chair faster that he could say Bajorian sand measles.

"Computer, unlock door."

A smug looking woman strode into the smallish room and stood purposely in the doorway, letting the brightened light flood across her figure and into the gloomy space. Bones covered his eyes but kept staring at her through the slats of his fingers, unable to look away.

Her legs went for _miles_.

"Wallowing in self pity isn't healthy you know," she said eloquently, allowing the sliding doors to close with a hiss behind her. She covered the space between the door and his desk in two striding steps, further closing the gap between them, "What are you still doing here?"

McCoy grunted, ordering the computer to raise the lights so that he could see, "In case of emergency."

Nyota smiled wistfully, "Bullshit."

McCoy dragged his feet off the table and tucked them underneath his desk where they belonged, "What are you still doing here is the question I should be asking you. Why aren't you gambolling through the streets of Betelgeuse II with the hobgoblin and the rest of them?"

"I volunteered to stay," Nyota replied simply, "Sulu was dying to hit up Betelgeuse II and so I took his place at the comm."

McCoy eyed her sharply, "You stayed up here _voluntarily_?"

"That's usually the definition," Nyota replied with a coy smile, running a carefully manicured hand against the smooth metal barrier sitting obtrusively in her path, "But I had ulterior motives."

McCoy furrowed his eyebrows, "Typical woman."

Cocking an eyebrow, she made the trek around his presumptuous desk, her manicured fingers trailing conspicuously behind. She stopped just inches from the cantankerous doctor and bent downwards at the waist until she was within eye level, smouldering him into silence.

"We're leaving here tonight," she whispered shamelessly, drawing her chocolate eyes along the strong contours of his nose and jaw. She ran her fingers up the crumpled fabric of his blue uniform until she reached the small where his shoulder met his neck, deviously scouring a finger nail along his jugular. The pads of her fingers were soon followed by her smooth palm as she ran her hand up the swoop of his jaw line, revelling in the rugged stubble that relentlessly grazed against her skin. She licked her lips unconsciously and retraced her path, plunging down his arm until she reached his calloused hand. Wrenching him upwards from his seat, she took a step back and threw him a smirk that could melt the heart of any ordinary man.

But McCoy was no ordinary man.

"Where are we-"

"Shh!" Nyota replied hastily, tossing him a fleeting glance over her shoulder. She grabbed his hand again, "Let's get going."

They emerged from the main sickbay to a deserted corridor and Nyota allowed a brief smile to grace her sharpened features. Scurrying down the halls with the berated doctor in her wake, she scooted into a turbolift and cautiously pressed a button, leading her further down into the lower reaches of the Enterprise. Anxiousness began to wreck havoc in the pit of her stomach; she could get _court marshalled_ for this.

A quick squeeze of her hand was all the reassurance she needed.

She picked the most remote transporter room in the entire flag ship; the entire space was devoid of any sentient life forms and Nyota quickly punched in the preset coordinates. Scuttling away from the transporter station, she joined the bemused McCoy on the complicated pad and nervously let the sensations of transportation to flood her sensories.

When they rematerialized, they were standing behind an unremarkable shed not too far from the main village. She tugged on McCoy's hand and pointed in the opposite direction, "The real show is from up here."

Hot on her brazen heels, McCoy couldn't help but watch the elegant curves of her body as she made her way up the grassy slope in which she was climbing. Tearing his eyes away for a brief millisecond, he saw that they were on their way to the top of a hill that towered over the village where the firelight festival was taking place. Nyota shot him a reassuring glance as they continued up the verdant knoll, her heart beginning to skip with excitement.

Heaving and out of breath, the two of them reached the flat surface of the hill and quickly collapsed onto their haunches side by side. Nyota leaned her head onto the doctor's tepid shoulder and took a deep breath, smiling as the realization hit her.

"I thought we might have missed it, but we're right on time."

Before McCoy could utter a reply, an explosion of iridescent organisms rose to a climax above the little village, bursting into a dazzling surge of light. Millions of colours he wasn't sure he had ever percieved before annihilated the evening's darkness into obscurity, sucking away every ounce of shade in the vicinity. The swirling light before him was like a roaring fire on a blustery winter evening, calming every high strung nerve in his tired body as he wrapped his arm around Nyota, his hand fitting perfectly between the cusp of her hip and her side. Inhaling a waft of her honeysuckle hair, he felt his eyes begin to close despite the brilliant display of lights dancing before his eyes.

_Home..._

"It's beautiful," she whispered contentedly against the surface of his neck. McCoy shivered involuntarily, revelling in the sensation of her hot lips against his skin.

Smiling for the first real time in days, McCoy looked up from the beautiful woman nestled against his side and watched the swirling mass of glistening lights in the sky at ease.

"Dear God," he murmured quietly, "I think I've met my match."

"Hmm?" Nyota hummed, bringing her lazy chocolate eyes up to meet with his.

"You've ruined me Nyota," he said with a grin, pressing his lips to her forehead, "You're making me a softie."

Nyota snorted, "Well, your bedside manner _could _really use an improvement."

Shaking with laughter, McCoy fell back onto the grassy floor, nudging Nyota along with him. She snuggled into him, burying her body into the warm niche of his side, "I'm insulted!"

"Sure you are," Nyota replied, propping herself onto her elbows. Their eyes met and she watched the glittering spectacle reflect in his russet orbs like a movie screen. She was sure that he was seeing the same thing in hers.

"You're my long road to ruin," he said contemplatively, thumbing the satin skin of her cheek, "I can see it in your eyes."

Nyota smiled and dipped her head, kissing his pliant lips with fervour, "Then may it go on forever."

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I hope you liked it! Please review!

Love and fluff,

Brontë


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